Tatemó chef is lone James Beard finalist from Houston
Emmanuel Chavez of Tatemó is among four other finalists in the Best Chef Texas category of the prestigious James Beard Awards.
While Houston was otherwise shut out after landing a bevy of semifinalist nominations, the 34-year-old Chavez is in the running, for the second year in a row, for what’s often called the Oscars of the food world. (Tatemó was previously nominated for Best New Restaurant in the country.)
“I feel a little more relief because this means we are consistently getting better,” Chavez said. “But we know the job’s not finished and that we have to focus on the next two months.”
Chavez joins the following chefs for the regional award:
• Christopher Cullum, Cullum’s Attaboy in San Antonio
• Tracy Malechek-Ezekiel, Birdie’s in Austin
• Misti Norris, Petra & the Beast in Dallas
• Ana Liz Pulido, Ana Liz Taqueria in Mission
The announcement comes after a strong showing for Houston in January, when area restaurants and chefs garnered 11 semifinalist nominations.
Houston candidates were recognized in national and state categories such as Outstanding
Restaurateur, Outstanding Restaurant, Emerging Chef, Best New Restaurant, Outstanding Hospitality, Outstanding Bakery, Outstanding Pastry Chef or Baker and Best Chef Texas.
None except Chavez made the cut, which is judged by a mix of people working in the restaurant industry as well as food media (including some past and present Chronicle employees).
The awards and recognition have opened doors for the restaurant and Chavez, who was called out as one the country’s best chefs in Food & Wine magazine last year. Esquire named the Spring Branch restaurant, located at 4740 Dacoma, one of
the best new openings the previous year.
Houston Chronicle critic Alison Cook has praised Chavez’s use of heirloom corn on the menu at the reservations-only Tatemó, which serves a sevencourse tasting menu for $125 that “vaults from one joy to another, whether it be a shiverycool opening ceviche or a downy, tart-and-sweet plantain tortilla hiding a mole negro of tongue and black-bean purée.
“Underpinning everything are the warm, rounded tones of the gorgeously hued masa that make this particular world spin on its axis,” Cook wrote in her Top 100 review. “Chavez has a memorable and deeply felt take on one of the city’s foundational cuisines.”
The accolades contributed to the Tatemó staff doubling in size to 13 to keep up with the increased demand. Calls to participate in food events, fundraisers, collaborations and media opportunities have become more frequent as well, but Chavez said he wants to shift his focus on being in the kitchen more.
Chavez closes the restaurant twice a year for about a week so he and his staff can rest and also dine out or travel to find inspiration and stay on top of trends. The recent “spring break,” which Chavez spent in San Francisco, was last week, and Tatemó’s first service since then fell on the same day as the Beard finalist nomination.
If Chavez wins in June, he will join Street to Kitchen’s Benchawan Jabthong Painter, who was named Best Chef Texas for her inspired Thai cooking in Houston’s East End.
Other Texas finalists include: Gemma in Dallas for Outstanding Hospitality; Convenience West in Marfa and Mixtili in San Antonio for Outstanding Restaurant; Barbs-B-Q in Lockhart for Outstanding New Restaurant; and David Uygur of Lucia in Dallas for Outstanding Chef.
“I would’ve wished to see more of my friends out there (as finalists),” Chavez said. “The more of us that are out there, the better it is for all of us.”
He said it’s not lost on him that the support of Houstonians has made Tatemó, a 20-seat restaurant, a dining destination.
The awards ceremony for winners will be held June 10 in Chicago, where Chavez will be the lone finalist from the fourthlargest city in the country.
“We hope to make Houston proud,” Chavez said.